I haven't really perused through others' comments and feedback, but I would expect people to not like the card. I think the card is fine. In general I liked all of the submissions and think all could be real Magic cards, and think that all could be useful Magic cards.
I have no problem with any of the particulars of the card. I think it's all flavorful enough and instantly reminded me of Pyre Hound - I presumed that that was the inspiration behind the card. If you were to press me, I'd say that I was bothered by the absence of Trample. It is trample that makes these cards have the possibility of seeing play because they cannot be chumped. I think you replaced Trample with Menace consciously, and I'm not sure why. Prowess didn't bother me - it seems like a tool to make the card worse or to narrow its utility to that of a "spells matter" deck of some kind.
I don't think I would compare Volcanic Cur to Spark Elemental, Hellspark Elemental, or Ball Lightning. Those cards are hyper efficient at what they do and are constructed-worthy. Volcanic Cur reads like a limited card to me. I think the card is more like Lava Axe or a single turn Pyre Hound in that we are looking at a card that needs to be balanced around a limited environment and doesn't really need to concern itself with Constructed issues. Obviously, a card that reads "1R, Sorcery, deal 4 damage to target opponent" is not good enough in almost all limited environments. Thus, I'd be looking for other synergies to make Volcanic Cur playable, because in a vacuum Volcanic Cur is worse than that hypothetical sorcery. I think in future designs of the card I would make it stronger in some way. Or accentuate its power in a way that points to a specific synergy or archetype. My fear is that right now, for any given limited environment, the card would not have a home.
If I'm reading your latest reply correctly, it sounds like you were going for a "spells-matter" version of Spark Elemental. In that case, I think I could see something like the following being cool and something that people might want to try out and play with. This card asks more of you than Spark Elemental or Hellspark Elemental, but if you jump through the instant/sorcery hoop it is just as efficient as those cards:
Volcanic Cur1R
Creature - Elemental Hound (U)
Haste, Trample/Menace
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell, Volcanic Cur gains double strike.
Sacrifice Volcanic Cur at the end of the turn.
3/1
I have no problem with any of the particulars of the card. I think it's all flavorful enough and instantly reminded me of Pyre Hound - I presumed that that was the inspiration behind the card. If you were to press me, I'd say that I was bothered by the absence of Trample. It is trample that makes these cards have the possibility of seeing play because they cannot be chumped. I think you replaced Trample with Menace consciously, and I'm not sure why. Prowess didn't bother me - it seems like a tool to make the card worse or to narrow its utility to that of a "spells matter" deck of some kind.
The card was inspired by Spark Elemental, and yes, I consciously changed trample to menace. Interestingly enough, part of the reason I made that change was because I wanted to increase its power level. It seems strange to me that you think it has the opposite effect. While I don't disagree that there are times when trample is better than menace, I think, more often than not, it is the other way around on creatures with power less than 5 or 6. Volcanic Cur is much better than Spark Elemental if your opponent has a single blocker with 4 or more toughness. I will say though, if I thought I could get away with it, I would've made the Cur cost , but I was afraid people wouldn't go for a strictly better Spark Elemental.
I don't think I would compare Volcanic Cur to Spark Elemental, Hellspark Elemental, or Ball Lightning. Those cards are hyper efficient at what they do and are constructed-worthy. Volcanic Cur reads like a limited card to me. I think the card is more like Lava Axe or a single turn Pyre Hound in that we are looking at a card that needs to be balanced around a limited environment and doesn't really need to concern itself with Constructed issues. Obviously, a card that reads "1R, Sorcery, deal 4 damage to target opponent" is not good enough in almost all limited environments. Thus, I'd be looking for other synergies to make Volcanic Cur playable, because in a vacuum Volcanic Cur is worse than that hypothetical sorcery. I think in future designs of the card I would make it stronger in some way. Or accentuate its power in a way that points to a specific synergy or archetype. My fear is that right now, for any given limited environment, the card would not have a home.
Again, I'm not sure how my card is unlike Spark Elemental. The thing I worried about the most when posting the card was that people would dismiss it as being a rip-off of Spark Elemental. It is just Spark Elemental for more, give it prowess, swap trample for menace. Also, if they made a sorcery that dealt 4 damage to the face for 2 CMC, I would draft every one of them I could if I was in red. I've played Lava Axe in limited on multiple occasions and have never regretted it.
Edit: BTW, I would also play a 1R sorcery that dealt 4 to the face in Modern.
If I'm reading your latest reply correctly, it sounds like you were going for a "spells-matter" version of Spark Elemental. In that case, I think I could see something like the following being cool and something that people might want to try out and play with. This card asks more of you than Spark Elemental or Hellspark Elemental, but if you jump through the instant/sorcery hoop it is just as efficient as those cards:
Volcanic Cur1R
Creature - Elemental Hound (U)
Haste, Trample/Menace
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell, Volcanic Cur gains double strike.
Sacrifice Volcanic Cur at the end of the turn.
3/1
This version seems pretty cool, but I think if I were going to go this route, I would just make a single turn Kiln Fiend.
(22 Total) - October 2014; December 2014; January 2015; April 2015; June 2015; August 2015; September 2015; November 2015; December 2015(T); January 2016; March 2016(T); April 2016; June 2016; October 2016; December 2016(T); February 2017; April 2017; December 2017; November 2018(T); January 2019; April 2019; June 2019
(8 Total) - May 2015; May 2016; June 2016; August 2016; October 2016; December 2016; October 2017; May 2019
(7 Total) - September 2015; October 2015; January 2016; March 2016; April 2016; July 2016(T); March 2019(T)
Thanks for taking my thoughts into consideration kjsharp. I don't mean to hassle you, or insist that I am correct, I was just trying to share my thought process on the card. Also, please don't feel compelled to respond to my response, only do so if you feel like it and have the time. I will say though, I have been enjoying the discussion.
On another note, it looks like it might be difficult for me to catch up to bravelion. I'm not throwing in the towel yet, but he certainly did come up with some solid designs for the round. It would be a much deserved victory for one of my favorite designers if that is indeed how things turn out. Good work as always Mr Lion!
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(22 Total) - October 2014; December 2014; January 2015; April 2015; June 2015; August 2015; September 2015; November 2015; December 2015(T); January 2016; March 2016(T); April 2016; June 2016; October 2016; December 2016(T); February 2017; April 2017; December 2017; November 2018(T); January 2019; April 2019; June 2019
(8 Total) - May 2015; May 2016; June 2016; August 2016; October 2016; December 2016; October 2017; May 2019
(7 Total) - September 2015; October 2015; January 2016; March 2016; April 2016; July 2016(T); March 2019(T)
I think the fact that it costs 2 instead of 1 is making me see the card wildly differently from you. Two is just so different than 1. It made me shift my focus so heavily toward Limited where I still don't think it is a good card from the perspective of a competitor. From the game designer perspective, I would rather have a card like this than a card like Act of Treason though. It occupies the same space as variants of Act of Treason (cards to get in the last points of damage). It is worse at its job than Wrangle, but I'd rather it be worse at its job than Wrangle. I think I'd still like to see the card only in an environment with which it had a synergy, but I've come around to seeing that the card can stand on its own in a hyper-aggressive format like ZEN or AKH.
After some thought, I can definitely see the argument that the menace could be an upgrade over trample. I was probably wrong.
I think that it is sometimes good to play Lightning Axe. Amonkhet would be such a format. Fate Reforged, with Lightning Shrieker was not. I drafted FRF-KTK probably 100-150 times online, and that card was cast against me once and to no good effect. So it all depends. I think Volcanic Cur *could* see play in Amonkhet, but I'm not sold. The sort of reach it provides is not as good as, say, Brute Strength most of the time. But if you're a bit short on playables or are missing that sort of reach effect I think Volcanic Cur could slot right into that slot and still be serviceable.
You're right that I probably would have liked the card more if it cost 1 mana. To balance it you could drop the prowess, thus making it Spark Elemental with menace instead of trample.
I think the insight into menace is valuable - I was surprised that Village Messenger and Insolent Neonate were really good at getting in a few points of damage early in SOI limited. Volcanic Cur would probably be the same way or be a good surprise attacker to help finish your opponent off in the late game while still having mana available to do other things.
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Congratulations on a well deserved victory bravelion. You're on a roll!
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(22 Total) - October 2014; December 2014; January 2015; April 2015; June 2015; August 2015; September 2015; November 2015; December 2015(T); January 2016; March 2016(T); April 2016; June 2016; October 2016; December 2016(T); February 2017; April 2017; December 2017; November 2018(T); January 2019; April 2019; June 2019
(8 Total) - May 2015; May 2016; June 2016; August 2016; October 2016; December 2016; October 2017; May 2019
(7 Total) - September 2015; October 2015; January 2016; March 2016; April 2016; July 2016(T); March 2019(T)
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I have no problem with any of the particulars of the card. I think it's all flavorful enough and instantly reminded me of Pyre Hound - I presumed that that was the inspiration behind the card. If you were to press me, I'd say that I was bothered by the absence of Trample. It is trample that makes these cards have the possibility of seeing play because they cannot be chumped. I think you replaced Trample with Menace consciously, and I'm not sure why. Prowess didn't bother me - it seems like a tool to make the card worse or to narrow its utility to that of a "spells matter" deck of some kind.
I don't think I would compare Volcanic Cur to Spark Elemental, Hellspark Elemental, or Ball Lightning. Those cards are hyper efficient at what they do and are constructed-worthy. Volcanic Cur reads like a limited card to me. I think the card is more like Lava Axe or a single turn Pyre Hound in that we are looking at a card that needs to be balanced around a limited environment and doesn't really need to concern itself with Constructed issues. Obviously, a card that reads "1R, Sorcery, deal 4 damage to target opponent" is not good enough in almost all limited environments. Thus, I'd be looking for other synergies to make Volcanic Cur playable, because in a vacuum Volcanic Cur is worse than that hypothetical sorcery. I think in future designs of the card I would make it stronger in some way. Or accentuate its power in a way that points to a specific synergy or archetype. My fear is that right now, for any given limited environment, the card would not have a home.
If I'm reading your latest reply correctly, it sounds like you were going for a "spells-matter" version of Spark Elemental. In that case, I think I could see something like the following being cool and something that people might want to try out and play with. This card asks more of you than Spark Elemental or Hellspark Elemental, but if you jump through the instant/sorcery hoop it is just as efficient as those cards:
Volcanic Cur 1R
Creature - Elemental Hound (U)
Haste, Trample/Menace
Whenever you cast an instant or sorcery spell, Volcanic Cur gains double strike.
Sacrifice Volcanic Cur at the end of the turn.
3/1
Again, I'm not sure how my card is unlike Spark Elemental. The thing I worried about the most when posting the card was that people would dismiss it as being a rip-off of Spark Elemental. It is just Spark Elemental for more, give it prowess, swap trample for menace. Also, if they made a sorcery that dealt 4 damage to the face for 2 CMC, I would draft every one of them I could if I was in red. I've played Lava Axe in limited on multiple occasions and have never regretted it.
Edit: BTW, I would also play a 1R sorcery that dealt 4 to the face in Modern.
This version seems pretty cool, but I think if I were going to go this route, I would just make a single turn Kiln Fiend.
On another note, it looks like it might be difficult for me to catch up to bravelion. I'm not throwing in the towel yet, but he certainly did come up with some solid designs for the round. It would be a much deserved victory for one of my favorite designers if that is indeed how things turn out. Good work as always Mr Lion!
After some thought, I can definitely see the argument that the menace could be an upgrade over trample. I was probably wrong.
I think that it is sometimes good to play Lightning Axe. Amonkhet would be such a format. Fate Reforged, with Lightning Shrieker was not. I drafted FRF-KTK probably 100-150 times online, and that card was cast against me once and to no good effect. So it all depends. I think Volcanic Cur *could* see play in Amonkhet, but I'm not sold. The sort of reach it provides is not as good as, say, Brute Strength most of the time. But if you're a bit short on playables or are missing that sort of reach effect I think Volcanic Cur could slot right into that slot and still be serviceable.
You're right that I probably would have liked the card more if it cost 1 mana. To balance it you could drop the prowess, thus making it Spark Elemental with menace instead of trample.
I think the insight into menace is valuable - I was surprised that Village Messenger and Insolent Neonate were really good at getting in a few points of damage early in SOI limited. Volcanic Cur would probably be the same way or be a good surprise attacker to help finish your opponent off in the late game while still having mana available to do other things.
I̟̥͍̠ͅn̩͉̣͍̬͚ͅ ̬̬͖t̯̹̞̺͖͓̯̤h̘͍̬e͙̯͈̖̼̮ ̭̬f̺̲̲̪i͙͉̟̩̰r̪̝͚͈̝̥͍̝̲s̼̻͇̘̳͔ͅt̲̺̳̗̜̪̙ ̳̺̥̻͚̗ͅm̜̜̟̰͈͓͎͇o̝̖̮̝͇m̯̻̞̼̫̗͓̤e̩̯̬̮̩n͎̱̪̲̹͖t͇̖s̰̮ͅ,̤̲͙̻̭̻̯̹̰ ̖t̫̙̺̯͖͚̯ͅh͙̯̦̳̗̰̟e͖̪͉̼̯ ̪͕g̞̣͔a̗̦t̬̬͓͙̫̖̭̻e̩̻̯ ̜̖̦̖̤̭͙̬t̞̹̥̪͎͉ͅo͕͚͍͇̲͇͓̺ ̭̬͙͈̣̻t͈͍͙͓̫̖͙̩h̪̬̖̙e̗͈ ̗̬̟̞̺̤͉̯ͅa̦̯͚̙̜̮f͉͙̲̣̞̼t̪̤̞̣͚e̲͉̳̥r͇̪̙͚͓l̥̞̞͎̹̯̹ͅi͓̬f̮̥̬̞͈ͅe͎ ̟̩̤̳̠̯̩̯o̮̘̲p̟͚̣̞͉͓e͍̩̣n͔̼͕͚̜e̬̱d̼̘͎̖̹͍̮̠,͖̺̭̱̮ ̣̲͖̬̪̭̥a̪͚n̟̲̝̤̤̞̗d̘̱̗͇̮͕̳͕͔ ͖̞͉͎t̹̙͎h̰̱͉̗e̪̞̱̝̹̩ͅ ̠̱̩̭̦p̯̙e͓o̳͚̰̯̺̱̰͔̘p̬͎̱̣̼̩͇l̗̟̖͚̠e̱͉͔̱̦̬̟̙ ̖͚̪͔̼̦w̺̖̤̱e͖̗̻̦͓̖̘̜r̭̥e͔̹̫̱͕̦̰͕ ̗͔̠p̠̗͍͍̱̳̠r̰͔͎̰o͉̥͓̰͚̥s̟͚̹̱͔̣t͉̙̳̖͖̪̮r̥̘̥͙̹a͉̟̫̟̳̠̟̭t͈̜̰͈͎e̞̣̭̲̬ ͚̗̯̟͙i͍͖̰̘̦͖͉ṇ̮̻̯̦̲̩͍ ̦̮͚̫̤t͉͖̫͕ͅͅh͙̮̻̘̣̮̼e͕̺ ͙l͕̠͎̰̥i̲͓͉̲g̫̳̟͈͇̖h̠̦̖t͓̯͎̗ ̳̪̘̟̙̩̦o̫̲f̙͔̰̙̠ ̹̪̗͇̯t͖̼̼͉͖̬h̹͇̩e͚̖̺̤͉̹͕̪ ͚͓̭̝̺G͎̗̯̩o̫̯̮̟̮̳̘d̜̲͙̠-̩̳̯̲̗̜P̹̘̥͉̝h͍͈̗̖̝ͅa͍̗̮̼̗r̜̖͇̙̺a̭̺͔̞̳͈o̪̣͓̯̬͙̯̰̗h̖̦͈̥̯͔.͇̣̙̝